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The Nightingale
夜莺
Hans Christian Andersen
汉斯·克里斯蒂安·安徒生
You know, of course, that in China the Emperor is Chinese, and all the people around him are Chinese too. It happened a good many years ago, but that's just why it's worthwhile to hear the story, before it is forgotten. The Emperor's palace was the most splendid in the world; entirely and altogether made of porcelain, so costly, but so brittle, that one had to be terribly careful. In the garden were to be seen the strangest flowers, and to the most splendid of them silver bells were tied, which tinkled so that nobody should pass by without noticing the flowers. Oh, the Emperor's garden had been laid out very smartly, and it extended so far that the gardener himself didn't know where the end was. If you went on and on, you came into the loveliest forest with high trees and deep lakes. The forest went right down to the sea, which was blue and deep; tall ships could sail right in under the branches of the trees; and in the trees lived a Nightingale, which sang so sweetly that even the poor fisherman, who had many other things to do, stopped still and listened when he had gone out at night to take up his nets and then heard the Nightingale.
你肯定知道，在中国，皇帝是中国人，他周围的人也是中国人。这故事是许多年以前发生的，但正因为这一点，在它被遗忘之前，这个故事才值得一听。这位皇帝的宫殿是世界上最华丽的地方，完全是瓷制的，如此地昂贵、易碎，人们必须万分当心。人们在御花园里可以看到世界上最珍奇的花儿。那些最名贵的花上都系着银铃，它们叮当作响，使走过的人们不得不注意这些花儿。噢，皇帝花园里的一切东西都布置得非常精巧。花园是那么大，连园丁都不知道它的尽头在什么地方。如果一个人不停地向前走，他可以碰到一片茂密美丽的树林，里面有很高的树，还有很深的湖。树林一直伸向蔚蓝色的、深沉的大海。巨大的船只可以在树枝底下航行。树林里住着一只夜莺。它的歌唱得非常美妙，就连一个忙碌的穷苦渔夫在夜间出去收网的时候，一听到这夜莺的歌声，也不得不停下来聆听。
